Wire clothes-pin.



No. 788,509. PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

E. w. & R. L. BALL.

WIRE CLOTHES PIN.

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 31, 1904.

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I m kw x 3, 2 Tfiy H121? UNITED STATES Patented May 2, 1905.

PATENT ()EEICE.

EUGENE BALL AND RALPH L. HALL, OF SOUTH BERVVICK, MAINE.

WIRE CLOTHES-Pl N.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 788,509, dated May 2,1905.

Application filed August 31, 1904. Serial No. 222,906.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EUGENE W. BALL and RALPH L. BALL, of South Berwick,in the county of York and State of Maine, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Wire Clothes-Pins; and we do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

This invention relates to laundry, and particularly to a classthereunder known as clothes-pins.

An object of this invention is to provide a clothes-pin comprising asingle piece of metal so bent as to form clamping-jaws which aredesigned to coact with the clothes-line for the purpose of retainingclothes on said line.

Furthermore, an object of this invention is to produce a clothes-pinwhich will possess advantages in points of efliciency and durability,proving at the same time comparatively inexpensive to manufacture.

WVith the foregoing and other objects in View the invention consists inthe details of construction and in the arrangement and combination ofparts to be hereinafter more fully set forth and specifically claimed.

In describing the invention in detail reference will be had to theaccompanying draw ings, forming part of this specification, wherein like.characters denote corresponding parts in both views, and in whichFigure 1 is a view in elevation of a clothespin embodying the inventionwhen in operative position-that is, when the clothes-pin holds thefabric on the clothes-line. Fig. 2 is a similar view illustrating theposition of the parts when about to be applied to a clothes- Theinvention comprises a single piece of metal, preferably wire, having acurved body A, the end of thematerial being inwardly bent at the pointsa and caused to converge toward the axis from which the curve is struck,the said ends being then outwardly curved to form the jaws 7) and b, thesaid ends being then bent on themselves to form guides c c and d cl,which guides are slidable on the curved body. Owing to the position ofthese guides, which intersect the body at approximately its hori- Zontaldiameter when the device is in its operative position, it will beobserved that any pressure or tension on the jaws of the body will serveto bind the loops of the guides against the curved body, therebyeffectually preventing any spreading of the jaws, and the said spreadingmay be accomplished only by sliding the loops up over the surface of thecurved body to the position shown in Fig. 2. As a further means forpreventing displacement of the loops or for preventing spreading of thebody it is our purpose to provide notches or recesses E in the body inorder that the looped portions of the guides may lie therein when theparts are in the operative position. (Shown in Fig. 1.) These notchesare adapted to hold the loops positively in such a position as to holdthe jaws Z1 6 closed. It is also our purpose to serrate the surfaces ofthe body, as shown at c c, in order that the looped portion of theguides may encounter resistance in the upward swing in order that thedisengagement of the jaws may be further retarded. In applying thedevice the loop may not at once engage notches E, so the loops wouldtherefore in View of their resiliency spring upward to such a point asto allow the device to fall from the line; but by arranging theserrations a above the notches such accidental displacement isprevented, as the loops will engage the serrations and be held thereby.It is to be observed that the notches or shoulders E are deeper than theserrations e.

The extremities of the material from which the pin is formed are bentinto loops F, which are designed for the reception of the thumb andfinger of an operator, or the jaws may be manipulated through pressureon the downturned portion f of the extremities in order to swing thesaid guides around the surface of the body.

The construction, operation, and advantages will, it is thought, heunderstood from the foregoing description, it being noted. that variouschanges may be resorted to in the proportions and details ofconstruction for successfully carrying the invention into practicewithout departing from the scope thereof,

Having fully described our invention, what we claim as new, and desireto secure by Letters Patent, is

A clothes-pin comprising a strip of metal formed into a curved body witharms bent to converge and overlie approximately centrally of the body,the diverging extremities of the arms being looped around the body andterminating in handles, the said looped portion being adapted to ride onthe body, serrations on the outer surface of the body on two sides andshoulders formed at the end of the serrations adapted to receive thelooped portions of the extremities, the said shoulders being in suchposition as to permit the Withdrawal of the looped portions fromengagement With the shoulders When pressure is applied to the handles,the said shoulders being deeper than the serrations, substantially asdescribed.

EUGENE W. BALL.

RALPH L. BALL.

Witnesses:

C. D. VARNEY, W. H. DOWNS.

